For all the dogs who've touched our hearts

Working from home with dogs… survive and enjoy it!

Working from home with your furry pal will be lots more fun if you take some simple steps to make life clearer for both of you.

I’ve been working from home with dogs for years. I studied, wrote a book, home-schooled my son and started a business all from home. Over time I’ve worked out how to make our lives flow together – more or less smoothly. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not always the calm, patient person I would like to be, but mostly we manage nicely.

Recently good friends expressed frustration at being thrust into managing a corporate life while working from home with their dogs. COVID19 has put many people in this position and it’s tough! So we put our heads together and came up with some tips.

This is the first of three blogs to help you survive and perhaps even enjoy working at home with your dogs.

Working from home with dogs

Routines rule!

Ever been amazed by how your dog seems to know when you’re going out or staying home? This is because they are wizards at noticing little changes, especially if those changes affect them. Dog trainers call these environmental cues and we can make them work for us while we're working at home.

Schedule a schedule

Get your new routine up and running by creating a schedule. Define start and finish times, break times and time with family and dogs. This is not only good for them, but for you too. When you work from home it’s easy to get sucked into the vortex of “just another hour” to get things done.

My Husband "Carrots" enjoying some down time from his corporate job

Flexibility is key

Of course there will be things you have to do, you're working with other people’s schedules too, but as far as possible allow for flexibility. Dogs can be unpredictable and expecting perfection is a recipe for disaster, so if you need to put that report down for 30 minutes because you dog is going bananas, that’s fine. Go look after you dog and finish the report when they're resting.

Mornings matter

Start the day with clear workday cues for yourself and your dog. It may be tempting to sleep in and slouch around in your pjs (sounds good to me) but if you begin the day with a work attitude, it can help your dog learn new routines more quickly. Get up at a designated time, shower, make coffee and aim to keep as much of the old routine in your workday as possible.

Work.. wear with dogs?

Remember those environmental cues? Is it possible to put on running (or in my case walking) shoes without exciting the dogs?

Get out of your pjs and tracksuits (sweats) and put your on your work clothes, or at least some of them. See how your dog reacts if you dress in your work trousers or skirt, a jacket or work shoes. Another idea could be to establish a band-new work at home uniform which is different to your weekend or relax gear – I’ll leave that up to your imagination!

Work... where with dogs?

A designated workspace is a great way of differentiating work from play. It can help shift your mindset and provide clear cues for your dog. It can be a whole room or a corner in a room; wherever you decide to set up, furnish it with things that prompt you to work.

Make it a quiet space, a place for focus and thought. Resist playing with your dog and keep any attention calm. If it’s not somewhere dogs can be locked out of, a large play pen or crate (if trained) can be a life saver.

Justis McLaren, Manager of Infrastructure Services at Moz, working from home during forced isolation with her Collie Summer

Working from home with dogs can be fun!

It can be frustrating working from home with dogs, but it’s also lots of fun! Take time to enjoy their antics, have plenty of cuddles and allow them to occasionally distract you from the urgency of your day.

And remember a vital lesson our dogs can teach us:

There is more to life than increasing its speed.

Mohandas K. Gandhi

Many thanks to...

Justis McLaren, Manager of Infrastructure Services at Moz and Destiny G. Kelledy, Senior Accountant at Comcast for insights into this topic. Justis and Destiny are also accomplished trainers who are bringing their knowledge to the field of canine massage therapy. Check out and like their Facebook page Two Sisters Healing Arts.

Up next: Tips to occupy your dogs while you're working from home